Beat of a Breaking Heart
by team-allen
Summary: When Danny returns to Hawaii after his fathers funeral, all he wants to do is talk and Steve is there to listen. big thanks to patchcat over at LJ for the amazing beta. slash.


The drive from the airport to Steve's was silent. There wasn't a need to speak. The unspoken gestures between them were more than enough; the quick glances, the occasional squeeze of a thigh, and the lacing of their fingers said everything that needed to be said.

The roads were a blur to Danny; and before he knew it, they were nearing the turn into Steve's road.

"Can we just...?" Danny started, the first words he'd spoken since the airport.

"Drive?" Steve asked, and Danny's reply was a simple nod.

Steve had an idea where Danny wanted to go. It was just a spot on Waikiki beach, but the views were breathtaking - nothing but miles and miles of water and it had one of the most beautiful sunsets Danny had ever seen. It was _their _spot.

They silently made their way onto the beach, fingers dangling between them, sitting as close to the water's edge as possible. Both of them removed their socks and shoes and let their toes dig into the warm sand.

"It was nice, y'know," Danny said, breaking the silence. "He would've liked it."

Steve nodded. He'd been there with both his parents, and the one thing he had needed more than anything was someone to listen to him. He knew Danny would be the same.

"Good turn out for him. Lots of his old work buddies." Danny nodded as he spoke.

"Did, um...?" Steve asked, but never finished. He wasn't sure if he should or not, but Danny knew.

"No," he said, looking down at the sand, fingers playing idly with the grains. Steve gently squeezed his shoulder reassuringly, receiving a small smile in return. "He, um, he texted, but he didn't think it was right for him to go. Mom's still pissed at him, but I know she wanted him there. She tried to hide it, but I could tell. We all could."

"How was Grace?" Steve asked, hand still resting on Danny's shoulder.

"She's ok. I mean, she _knows_ Gramps is gone, but I think, more than anything, she just liked being back there. They all spoiled her rotten, as usual," he said with a smile. "I think it was good for her to see everyone. Just wish it was under different circumstances, y'know? And for Rachel as well. Dad was always fond of her." He dug his toes further into the sand and stared out onto the horizon.

As much as he hated Hawaii when he first moved here, there was no denying it felt like "home" to him now.

"Grace kept asking if I was ok, and if I missed you." He glanced over at Steve as he spoke. Steve smiled as Danny spoke, thinking back to the airport when he'd dropped them all off and the last thing he'd said to Grace as he hugged her goodbye

"_Look after Danno for me, Gracie," he'd whispered in her ear. _

"_I will, Uncle Steve," she'd whispered back with a small nod of her head as Steve hugged her even tighter. _

"I wish he knew. He would've liked you." Danny leaned his head down, resting it on Steve's hand. "I'm sure Mom knows."

Steve ever so slightly raised an eyebrow as Danny spoke. "Yeah?" he asked.

Danny lifted his head from Steve's hand and looked at him. "Yeah. She saw my cell wallpaper and asked who it was."

_It was of Grace and Steve. It had been taken a few months previous. The three of them had spent the day at a local fair; gorging on junk food, drinking cups full of soda, and whizzing around on various rides. They'd even had a caricature drawing done of the three of them, which Grace had hung at the end of her bed the minute she got home._

_The picture Danny had chosen was taken towards the end of the day. Grace had spotted the stall earlier in the day and had near enough dragged Steve over to it._

"_Can we, Steve? Pleaseeeeeee?" she begged, looking at him with her big brown eyes, which she knew would always work. It didn't take long for him to say yes, each picking out what the other would have._

"_Well, don't you two look, um, different?" Danny said when they'd finally tracked him down at one of the benches, enjoying a cup of coffee._

"_I've gotta get a picture of this," he said as he dug his phone out of his pocket. "Smile!" Danny said as he snapped the picture of them, to which they both pulled a stupid face; but to Danny, it was anything but stupid. He could feel his heart swelling with love at the sight, because he didn't think there were many people that Steve would happily have pink stars, rainbows, and dolphins painted on his face for, but from the minute the picture had been taken it had been Danny's wallpaper and there wasn't much else he'd change it for._

"As soon as I said your name, her eyes lit up, and she gave me _that_ look and said; "_oh, so THAT'S Steve_," patted my head, and walked away. My mom never pats my head," he said with a slight laugh.

"That doesn't sound too bad," Steve replied.

"It wasn't," Danny said and looked at Steve. "But then she spoke to Grace," he said with a smile.

Steve's eyes lit up, as they always did, at the mention of Grace. He returned the smile, shook his head slightly, and asked with a laugh, "What did she say?"

"Oh the usual, y'know; how we spend pretty much all our time together at yours, how you're teaching her to surf, how she has her own room at yours which we all painted _together_, but she nailed it when helping Mom make dinner. They were making lasagne and Gracie told Mom how I'd made it for you one day and that we were "celebrating something" but she didn't know what, and then added on that _Steve makes Danno smile_."

Steve couldn't help but grin at the last comment.

"And after putting her to bed, Mom was outside the room and said that Gracie speaks very highly of you and next time I visit I have to bring you as she wants to meet the _man who makes_ _Gracie's Danno smile so much_."

"You've got a good kid there," Steve told him. He moved his hand down to find Danny's own and linked their fingers together, the pad of his thumb running across Danny's hand.

"I just hope I can make her as proud as my dad made me." Danny could feel tears starting to prick at his eyes as he spoke.

"Oh, Danny, she already is," Steve said and gently squeezed his hand.

"You think so?" he asked and turned to look at Steve with his head slightly bowed.

"Babe," Steve started and hooked his finger under Danny's chin, raising his head slightly so their eyes met again. "I **know** so."

He leaned forward, their foreheads barely touching, and placed a soft kiss on Danny's lips. He ran his fingers along Danny's jaw and over his neck, and then rested them on the back of his neck, fingers playing with the soft curls of his hair.

"Thank you," Danny mumbled against Steve's mouth. "For everything."

Steve pulled back slightly and went to speak, but Danny shook his head. "I know you'll say it's what you're here for and I get that, I really do," he said and raised his hand and cupped the side of Steve's face, dragging his thumb across the stubble. "It's not just this, but everything you've done for me and Gracie. After Rachel, I never expected to find someone who accepted me for who I am and what I do, but then you appeared and, as cliché as it sounds, you filled that missing piece of me that Rachel never could.

"I can't even put into words the feeling I get when I see you with Grace. There are literally a handful of people I trust to care for her, and as you full well know, even then I worry about her."

Steve smiled at that because he **did **know. There had been many times they'd been out, either on a job or socially, and Danny had been itching to check up on Grace and usually made at least one phone call and sent a few texts.

"But with you, I don't need to because I know you'll never let anything happen to her. When I moved here, she was my entire life. It was just me and her. But I can't imagine life without you now, and I know she feels the same. I'll always be a Jersey boy - it's where I was born and raised - but here with you and Grace, I've never felt more at home."

Their eyes locked once more, focusing on nothing but each other as Danny continued pouring his heart out.

"These last few weeks have been shit, they really have, but just having you here has helped me get through this more than you'll ever know. I know I've been moody and irritable at times and I know you'll say it's understandable, but for that...I'm sorry." Danny paused for a moment and drew a shaky breath, his eyes never leaving Steve's own. "I just...thank you. Thank you for just being you."

He swallowed hard, but the tears he'd been holding in finally broke through and all the emotions and feelings he'd held in came gushing out. He fell forward onto Steve, his hands gripping onto Steve's shirt as he sobbed, his body lurching and shaking as he broke down. Steve could do nothing but hold him, his hand running in soothing motions on his back as he muttered reassurances into Danny's ear. It broke his heart seeing him like this, but he'd been bottling it up inside for weeks; and as painful as it was for him, he knew it was what Danny needed.

He held onto him until the tears died down and the sobbing and shaking had stopped and he could feel Danny's breathing return to a normal rhythm. They broke apart slightly. Danny raised his head and looked at Steve with his tear-stained face and blotchy eyes. Steve ran a finger across his cheek, wiping away some of the tears. Danny closed his eyes and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in.

"I...I...just -," Danny started, his eyes barely opening as he felt the sting of fresh tears emerging, but couldn't find the words to finish.

"I know. I know," Steve told him, his hand still resting on Danny's face as another tear fell. "I'm here, babe," Steve whispered and pulled Danny's head towards his shoulder, kissing the side of his hair. "I'm here."


End file.
